Venezuela?s Petroleum Minister Nelson Martínez held a follow-up meeting with Stuart Young, Minister in the Prime Minister?s Office with whom he evaluated the progress of the gas projects agreed between the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and the T&T, specifically the gas connection project.

This gas connection energy initiative will run from the Dragon field in Sucre state to the northeast of Venezuela, from the Pdvsa Mariscal Sucre project to the Hibiscus platform in T&T operated by Shell and the National Gas Company Of Trinidad and Tobago (NGC).

?This visit to T&T is a follow-up meeting to review the agreements in which Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago have been working, thanks to the initiative of our highest authorities,? said Martínez.

Martínez also added that this visit to T&T is due to the fulfilment of the commitments made between the president of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro and prime minister Dr. Keith Rowley.

?In the relationship of these countries, the values of solidarity and complementarity, the legacy of supreme commander Hugo Chavez, is prevailing through the implementation of regional integration initiatives,? said Martínez .

Martínez explained that the gas interconnection project will allow the production of 150 million cubic feet of gas, in the first phase, with an extension of up to 250 million cubic feet.

Representatives of Shell company also participated in this follow-up meeting.

Mounir Bouaziz, South America?s Gas Vice President for Shell and Luis Prado, Shell president for Venezuela, Trinidad and Tobago and the English and Dutch Caribbean, as well as representatives of the NGC were present.

Luis Prado, Shell?s representative, said: ?It is an immense honour and a great responsibility to have been invited to collaborate in the implementation of this energy integration project, the gas connection of Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago. ?

He also applauded the progress made in this project: ?Today we have seen the progress that the teams have been making and very soon we will reach the signing of the first agreements resulting from this project.?

The Venezuelan delegation that participated in this meeting was attended by the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela?s ambassador to T&T Coromoto Godoy, Valeria Matamoros, Director for the Development of Natural Gas of the Gas Vice-Ministry, Raúl Licausi, vice-chancellor for the Caribbean and president of PDV Caribe and Juan Santana, Director of Offshore of PDVSA.